1. Field
The present disclosure generally relates to systems and methods of joining tubing and, in particular, fittings that can join to a range of sizes of tubing.
2. Description of the Related Art
One method of transferring fluids from one location to another is through fluid conduits that are referred to by a variety of names including tubing, pipe, piping, hoses, and lines. The name is frequently associated with the diameter of the fluid conduit. fluid conduit that is flexible, made of a plastic, and having an outer diameter on the order of a few centimeters or less is commonly called tubing although this varies across industries. It is common to attach a coupling or fitting to one or both ends of the fluid conduit to enable easier attachment to fluid containers or other fluid-handling elements or to create more complex fluid transfer systems. Fittings are commonly sized to match the inside or outside diameter of the fluid conduit, and each size of fluid conduit typically requires a unique size of fitting to provide the proper fit between the fluid conduit and the fitting.
In the medical field, fluids are frequently administered as infusions. The container holding the medical fluid, such as a flexible intravenous (IV) bag, is connected to an infusion device, such as an IV needle, by a disposable IV set comprising tubing having one or more fittings. IV sets may also have intermediate ports or connection points where additional fluid containers may be connected to introduce or withdraw fluid. The tubing is connected to the fittings by one or more of mechanical attachment, such as a barbed fitting that is inserted into the interior of the tubing, and bonding, such as a solvent weld between an internal pocket of the fitting and the exterior surface of the tubing. One of the challenges of fabricating IV sets is that tubing comes in a wide variety of sizes and the availability of a specific size of tubing may be intermittent, sometimes leading to unintended shutdowns of production for lack of the compatible fittings and tubing.